Come Back to Me

XVIII

Parker swung his pack to his front, ripping the scarf out with as much speed as he could come up with.

"Do you have one?" Cordelia had the burlap material waving in her hand to show Carter what she had meant.

When he shook his head, she wasted no time to tie her's around his face.

"What about you?" His eyes widened.

Cordelia shook her head, pulling the knot tight enough to keep it in, her hazel orbs locking on his crytal-like ones, "Don't pull this down. Put your jacket on, make sure the hood is over your face so none gets in your eyes."

She pulled her own jacket, using the hood as a mask, taking Carter's hand with her free one. He knew to listen by the look on her face, as well as the tone engraved in her words.

"Parker. I need you to be in the front because you'll be able to open your eyes more with your hood on!"

She could only look at him one more time before the wind picked up to almost an unbearable speed. It happened just as Gretchen had said it would, without a second's notice. The grains of sand were rouch enough to scrape her exposed back as they whisked by. She flew forward in a rush of pain stumbling into Parker as he grabbed ahold of her shirt to keep her pace with his, Carter latching Grtecthen's hand to his pack before they started to move. She squeezed her eyes as tightly as they would go, robbing herself of her sight completely as Parker all but drug her along, resulting in the stumbling of each of them. They followed the path of the river as they kept going, Cordelia haulting immediately at the feeling of Carter ripping his hand out of her's.

"Carter," She yelled, "Carter-"

She opened her eyes briefly to find the boy, his figure being blurred into nothing but a shadowy blob by the blowing sand. He got close enough for her to see his lips move but, when she stepped closer her head jerked back at the stabbing feeling the sand sent through her left ear.

"What?" Her face contorted into confusion, the boy's cracked lips sending out nothing but a muffled hum.

"The scarf, I dropped it!"

Carter had just enough time to finish the sentence before he hunched over into a painful coughing fit. Cordelia grabbed his hand tightly, trying to pull him to keep moving but all of his strength was devoted to trying to clear his throat. She slapped her palm into the center of his back as hard as she could, to no true avail. Parker turned to call out for her but let out nothing but a painful yell instead.

"Just keep going!" Cordelia shouted out.

Parker moved forward quickly, Cordelia tucking Carter's face into her side before closing her eyes again and Gretchen still stumbilng along behind them without a clue as to what was going on. No one could tell how long they had gone on that way, though Cordelia had assumed it had been at least forty-five minutes before she was able to open her eyes. Somehow, Parker had been able to find another cave like structure along the river, dragging the rest of them in behind him. As soon as she felt it was clear enough, Cordelia dropped her jacket and her pack, desperate to get a look at her back.

"It's not that bad," Carter choked out, his throat finally calming down, "does it hurt?"

"It kind of burns. Hurt more in the moment though. Now it's nothing I won't be able to manage."

Parker let out another cry, hunched over against the rocky wall of the structure, bringing Carter his way observantly.

The younger boy knelt down, prying Parker's hands off of his face, "Let me see it?"

When he removed his hands, it was obvious that it was his right eye that was bothering him. Even with his face littered with small scrapes from the speed the sand was moving through the air, Parker's right eye was glowing red with inflammation, as well as watery and swollen. Carter insturcted him to cover the eye that was not damaged before holding up three fingers.